LA CLIPPERS: GUARDS: CHRIS PAUL was every bit an MVP-caliber player in his first year in L.A. They should monitor his minutes late in the regular season to keep him fresh for the playoffs. . . His Achilles is on schedule to be healed by December, and CHAUNCEY BILLUPS will start once he's healthy. He's likely to lose athleticism, and his leash could be short if he shoots as poorly as he did last year . . . JAMAL CRAWFORD steps in to lead the second unit. We'll see how quickly his inefficient, shoot-first ways grow stale . . . ERIC BLEDSOE was a stud in the playoffs. He can't play extended minutes alongside Paul, but coach Vinny Del Negro knows he has to get Bledsoe on the floor . . . WILLIE GREEN provides capable depth, but he's on the outside looking in at the rotation. FORWARDS: BLAKE GRIFFIN's knee injury likely isn't serious enough to linger into the season. He's starting to develop some post moves to go along with his dunks . . . CARON BUTLER played hurt for most of last year, but still did enough to nail down a starting job for this season . . . LAMAR ODOM moped his way back to L.A. Don't be surprised if he has a strong bounce-back year, especially considering he'll be the Clippers' best defensive big . . . GRANT HILL could see some starts, but more likely the 40-year-old is pegged for limited minutes . . . MATT BARNES will replace Hill once he injures himself again . . . RONNY TURIAF will provide some of the toughness they lost when Reggie Evans left . . . TREY THOMPKINS will continue to languish on the bench, especially after sitting out the preseason with a knee injury. CENTERS: He can block shots and rebound, but at this point DeANDRE JORDAN is just too much of a defensive liability in space to play 30-plus minutes. That's why the Clippers will often pair Lamar Odom with Blake Griffin in the frontcourt . . . RYAN HOLLINS can also defend the basket and has six fouls to give.

CHARLOTTE: GUARDS: RAMON SESSIONS will have to adjust to a major downgrade in teammates, but he has the kind of versatile offensive skill set to be the focal point of this offense . . . The athletic GERALD HENDERSON has made strides the past two seasons. Realistically, his offensive skills are those of a No. 4 or 5 option . . . Coach Mike Dunlap is high on KEMBA WALKER, who was sometimes overwhelmed as a rookie. With a few new sets built in for him, he could thrive as a sixth man getting starter's minutes . . . BEN GORDON won't overtake Henderson, but should see big minutes as the Cats' only shooter . . . REGGIE WILLIAMS is a D-League talent . . . MATT CARROLL, in the final year of his $27 million deal, symbolizes everything that's gone wrong under Michael Jordan. FORWARDS: Drafting MICHAEL KIDD-GILCHRIST was as much about changing the losing culture as it was adding a piece they needed. MKG's statistical output is a question mark, but he'll see big minutes as a defensive stopper and intangibles guy . . . This team is seriously lacking in the post, where they may have no choice but to play TYRUS THOMAS for significant minutes. The talented but uber-underachieving big man claims to have added 20 pounds of muscle in the offseason. If nothing else, they might showcase him in a desperate attempt to get some trade value . . . Rookie JEFFERY TAYLOR figures to make the team and has the versatility and athleticism to be a respectable second-unit guy. CENTERS: Charlotte sees BISMACK BIYOMBO as a franchise cornerstone. He can certainly rebound and block shots, but his offense is atrocious . . . BRENDAN HAYWOOD brings a veteran presence. At his age he can't go more than 15 or so minutes per night . . . BYRON MULLENS never saw a shot he didn't like. He'll get one more chance to prove he's an NBA rotation player, able to play the four or five . . . DeSAGANA DIOP is doing those things that DeSagana Diop does.

The Clippers (15-6) have followed up a four-game skid from Nov. 21-26 with seven straight victories, including a 94-89 win over Chicago on Tuesday to begin a four-game road trip.

Blake Griffin scored 22 points and grabbed 10 rebounds while Chris Paul added 18 points for Los Angeles, which last won a team-record eight in a row from Nov. 30-Dec. 15, 1991.

"Games on the road like this, after we had a little bit of success, six games, coming on the road, you don't want to have a letdown," Griffin said. "These are the kinds of wins you need."

The Clippers, who play at Milwaukee on Saturday and end their trip Monday at Detroit, have held opponents to an average of 91.6 points during their streak.

"We knew we were on the road and we'd have to withstand a run we knew they would make. Our defense kept us in the game," Paul said.

"We want our identity to be a defensive identity. We're still trying to build that."

Paul, who grew up relatively close to Charlotte in Winston-Salem and played two seasons at Wake Forest, looks to help guide Los Angeles to its fourth straight victory over a Bobcats team that hasn't won since it matched last season's win total Nov. 24.

Charlotte (7-13) fell 104-96 at home to Golden State on Monday. Kemba Walker scored 24 points and rookie Michael Kidd-Gilchrist added 17 for the Bobcats, who were behind by as many as 21 to the Warriors before making a fourth-quarter run.

"We've got to play that way from the start," said Walker, who scored 17 points in the second half. "That's it. We waited too long to play that way. I take full responsibility. I've got to set the tone early and I didn't do that."

Coach Mike Dunlap's team has been terribly inconsistent during its slump, suffering defeats by 45 points at Oklahoma City on Nov. 26 and 30 to San Antonio on Saturday while also losing at the buzzer to New York among a few narrow defeats.

"What the team has got to understand is it's a four-quarter game and it's two-and-a-half event," Dunlap said. "While frustrating, the education continues for us."

After Charlotte committed a season-worst 18 turnovers, owner Michael Jordan joined Tuesday's practice to try and give pointers to his young squad. He played one-on-one with Kidd-Gilchrist and Gerald Henderson and worked on post moves with center Bismack Biyombo.

"He cares a lot," Henderson told the team's official website. "It's an important thing for him. Us as players, we care a lot, but to see somebody from management come down, be around and have a voice is a special thing."